Slog
News & ArtsThursday, December 3, 2009
City The End of i-Booze
Posted by Eli Sanders on Thu, Dec 3, 2009 at 1:40 PM
If you didn't know you could go online and get alcohol delivered right to your door in Seattle—well, it's too late now.
TechFlash reports that i-booze.com ("Instant online alcohol delivery—booze, cigarettes, salvia") has been shut down.
[Founder Karim Varela] blames outgoing City of Seattle attorney Tom Carr for the legal troubles, and he's hoping that newcomer Pete Holmes will see his side of the story."We feel our downfall was mostly due to ex city attorney Tom Carr's battle against bars, clubs, and alcohol in Seattle and we just got caught up in the middle when really we're providing a beneficial service for the community," said Varela.
3
I don't know about Seattle, but there's a liquor store every other block here, and I mean that quite literally. Who the hell would pay extra to have it delivered?
4
Fifty-Two-Eight: haha. Since hard liqour is only sold by the state in Washington, there are only a handful of liquor stores in Seattle and most of them close around 7pm.
I-booze was great, I used them a few times, but they only delivered beer and wine, not hard alcohol. They also delivered mixers and snacks and Salvia!! (!!) with a few bucks delivery charge. It was perfect for the few party situations I was in where we needed more beer but no one could drive.
It was basically like Kosmo but for beer and dissociative hallucinogens.
RIP Kosmo.com / I-Booze.com
I-booze was great, I used them a few times, but they only delivered beer and wine, not hard alcohol. They also delivered mixers and snacks and Salvia!! (!!) with a few bucks delivery charge. It was perfect for the few party situations I was in where we needed more beer but no one could drive.
It was basically like Kosmo but for beer and dissociative hallucinogens.
RIP Kosmo.com / I-Booze.com
5
"perfect for the few party situations I was in where we needed more beer but no one could drive"
My understanding is that this is the rationale for shutting it down. WA law states alcohol cannot be sold or served to people who appear intoxicated, and the attorney's office found the service to be open to potential abuse in this regard. Shame, really, it did come in handy occasionally.
My understanding is that this is the rationale for shutting it down. WA law states alcohol cannot be sold or served to people who appear intoxicated, and the attorney's office found the service to be open to potential abuse in this regard. Shame, really, it did come in handy occasionally.
6
No more booze deliveries?!? But what if I'm hammered and run out of liquor? I guess I could drive there...
7
Yes, 5280, it's true. And since the closure of the Wallingford store, there is now no liquor store within two miles of where I'm sitting, even though it's right in the heart of the city's north side. And I work past seven most nights, which means if I want liquor I have to get in a car and drive crosstown, which is just about the most unpleasant thing you can do in this city, for about an hour round-trip.
God damn the WSLCB to hell.
God damn the WSLCB to hell.
10
Great opportunity for some enterprising underemployed persons to pick up the slack. License smicense... (that's supposed to rhyme)...if you're smart about it, there's some decent money to be made.
11
Wow, that is so retarded. Surely we'd want to discourage people from driving when sozzled?
@8: Worse. Most 3rd world countries are pretty easy when it comes to getting wankered :p
@8: Worse. Most 3rd world countries are pretty easy when it comes to getting wankered :p
13
Fnarf @7
"God damn the WSLCB to hell. "
That's the first sane thing you've said on Slog in months.
"God damn the WSLCB to hell. "
That's the first sane thing you've said on Slog in months.
16
I am so fucking sick of the WSLCB's stranglehold on not just liquor-by-the-bottle sales, but on clubs, restaurants, lounges, bars, for-chrissake-strip-clubs, etc. Why are we allowing this Puritanical bunch of bluenoses to make these decisions? Do they actually stop anyone from drinking? No. So what the HELL is their actual benefit to society?
I'm just pissed because I have to pay such a freaking premium on wine shipments - so many places are not permitted to ship to Washington state at all, and Costco can't carry liquor here. They've just released their own premium house-labeled tequila, among others - and we can't get it here. We're being treated like six-year-olds, and I for one am sick to death of it.
Meh. Poop on their heads, I say.
I'm just pissed because I have to pay such a freaking premium on wine shipments - so many places are not permitted to ship to Washington state at all, and Costco can't carry liquor here. They've just released their own premium house-labeled tequila, among others - and we can't get it here. We're being treated like six-year-olds, and I for one am sick to death of it.
Meh. Poop on their heads, I say.
18
I only found out recently that Wa State liqour prices are TWICE that of most other states. Why isn't there some initiative to changes this b.s. and/or to allow supermarkets to sell booze. Total extortion
19
I think a carefully-crafted initiative to force the WSLCB to sell its liquor sales monopoly rights might be something that lefties and libertarian teabagger types would actually agree on. Let the WSLCB continue to set some sort of standard for "selling responsibly", but sell off the actual liquor stores (and possibly wholesaling, though I'm sure the WSLCB would want to continue to set pricing).
Of course, the WSLCB would fight it tooth-and-nail, as would any government agency with a huge cash flow -- everyone in it just trying to preserve their jobs, knowing the same job wouldn't be nearly as easy in the private sector.
Of course, the WSLCB would fight it tooth-and-nail, as would any government agency with a huge cash flow -- everyone in it just trying to preserve their jobs, knowing the same job wouldn't be nearly as easy in the private sector.
20
@18, that's not even close to true. Our liquor costs about the same as elsewhere -- more than some, less than some. The problem with the WSLCB isn't the amount of tax, it's on the restraint of trade.
21
Maybe Tim Eyman would take up this cause to un-strangle the liquor biz in this state. Taxes would be lowered, after all, if the private sector were permitted to compete.
23
@ 21, 22 - TOTALLY!
That would be the Very First Eyman initiative that I would be able to get behind. It would also improve his public image to no end.
EYMAN! Do you read The Slog?? Will you HEED THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE?!?!?
That would be the Very First Eyman initiative that I would be able to get behind. It would also improve his public image to no end.
EYMAN! Do you read The Slog?? Will you HEED THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE?!?!?
26
I remember reading something in the Times about 8 years ago that talked about how WA state liquor costs several dollars more per bottle that the same liquor in CA. I can't find it now, though. It stands to simple Econ 101 that if you reduce the supply you increase the price. Then add the price controls from WA state. It's not rocket surgery.
27
I know for a fact that our liquor is much more expensive in real dollars. Every year when we're going down to Burning Man we wait to stock up on alcohol until we're in California because it's almost 50% cheaper. A handle of vodka which goes for $36~$40 in WA is $18~$20 in CA.
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